Poland market overview

Why Poland matters

• Poland's macroeconomic stability, competitive labour costs and proximity to major markets have made it a favoured destination for Canadian trade and investments. Poland's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has grown nearly eightfold in the last 30 years and has become the European Union's (EU) 6th largest economy.
• In 2023, bilateral merchandise trade with Poland reached $3.8 billion. Canadian exports to Poland totalled $863 million, while Canadian imports from Poland totalled $3.0 billion.
• Canadians invested nearly $1 billion directly into Poland in 2022, primarily in the sectors of
  • advanced manufacturing
  • information and communications technology (ICT)
  • renewable energy
  • engineering, agriculture
  • healthcare
  • pharmaceuticals.
• Polish direct investment in Canada reached nearly $4.5 billion in 2022. Polish companies are active in ICT, oil and gas, and mining.
• The Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) was provisionally put into effect in 2017. Trade between Canada and Poland has increased by 72% since the agreement's commencement.

Sectoral opportunities

Aerospace

Aircraft parts are the single most traded products between Canada and Poland, totalling $962M ($605M in Canadian imports from Poland, $357M exports to Poland), a legacy of ongoing Canada/Poland collaboration in Aerospace since the 70's.

Agriculture and processed foods

Poland represents a promising market for Canadian agricultural exporters due to its robust and growing agri-food sector. As the largest producer of apples and poultry in the EU, Poland's increasing consumer demand for diverse and high-quality products creates significant opportunities. Canadian exporters can capitalize on the market potential for organic foods, nutraceuticals, pulses, grains, plant-based proteins, and premium petfood. With the shift towards healthier eating and technological advancements. By leveraging Poland's strategic location and established distribution channels, Canadian agricultural exporters can effectively expand their reach within the European market.

Defence

Poland spends over 4% ($53B) of its GDP on its armed forces. This is the highest of any NATO state and doubling their overall spending since 2022. The Polish Armed Forces have demonstrated their trust in Canadian solutions. They have become the 7th largest market for Canadian companies in this sector. MSPO, which takes place the first week of September annually in Kielce is Poland's version of CANSEC and is a must-attend show for anyone interested in the Polish defence and security market.

Energy

Poland's energy market offers many opportunities for Canadian businesses, given the desire to move towards cleantech and nuclear technology. Renewable Energy Sources contributed to over 20% of overall electricity output in 2020 in Poland. There are already established partnerships between Canadian and Polish companies within this field.

Other opportunities exist in:

• water/wastewater
• waste-to-energy/waste gasification
• hydrogen exporting
• clean transportation
• geothermal district heating
• improving air quality
• many other areas.

In the nuclear space, Poland is working on having an operational power plant. They intend to use and maintain Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) with the help of Ontario Power Generation (OPG).

Fish and seafood

Poland presents a great opportunity for Canadian exporters of fish and seafood. This is due to its well-developed and strategically important fish processing industry, which is the fourth largest in Europe. The industry relies heavily on imported raw materials, providing a ready market for high-quality Canadian products. Poland's advantageous geographical location and competitive labor costs make it a key hub for fish processing, distributing value-added products across Europe.

Growing health consciousness and rising disposable incomes among Polish consumers are expected to increase demand for premium seafood products, such as:

• cooked and live lobsters
• snow crabs
• scallops
• mussels

ICT/Digital industries

AD. The growth dynamics was 11.4% for 2022, a high but lower growth rate is expected for the next years.

According to a private sector survey, over 50% of companies plan to increase IT budgets. Banking, retail and public administration are traditionally the largest IT spenders but healthcare, utilities, life sciences and production sectors plan the highest budget increases. Migration to cloud, cybersecurity and digitalization of business processes are priorities, which are named most often.

Opportunities for Canadian companies are largest in:

• cybersecurity
• AI and Machine Learning
• process automation with a focus on smart cities, govtech, fintech and insurtech, healthtech, retailtech.